Zeitwahrnehmung und -darstellung in Ludwig Tiecks Die Elfen und den Kindermärchen E.T.A. Hoffmanns

Abstract

The present article discusses three romantic fairy tales which are closely linked by intertextual references and each of which focuses on children as main characters: Ludwig Tieck’s The Elves and E.T.A. Hoffmann’s The Nutcracker and the Mouse King and The Strange Child. The article shows that these works reflect a changed concept and perception of time which emerged during the modernization process. It examines the ways in which the tales make various aspects of this “modern time regime” a subject of discussion and tries to work out how the authors position themselves regarding the problems and conflicts that result from the newly emerging concept of time. While Tieck deals with forms of acceleration embedded in economic interrelations, Hoffmann addresses issues arising from the establishment of time discipline and connects his reflections with his poetic concepts.